The iconic 38-year-old Brazilian champion and the undefeated
28-year-old upstart will meet on July 6 in Las Vegas, as Silva
defends his middleweight title against Weidman in the UFC
162 main event. The challenger has had a theoretical date
circled for quite some time.

“When I started MMA about four years ago, he was the champion at
185, and when I made the decision to go to 185, I had to believe I
could beat the champion of the world or there was no reason for me
to do this,” Weidman said during a UFC Fight Club Q&A on April
26. “From the get-go, no matter who I was fighting coming up, I
wasn’t only training to beat those guys I was up against; I was
training already at that point to beat Anderson Silva and to be the
best in the world. Now that I’ve finally got the opportunity to get
there, I’m not going to let the opportunity slip through my
fingers.”

Weidman has opened his MMA career with a perfect 9-0 record,
including UFC wins over Alessio
Sakara, Jesse
Bongfeldt, Tom Lawlor,
Demian
Maia and Mark Munoz.
Still, it took a series of fortunate events to ensure the
“All-American” was paired with Silva on a UFC marquee so soon. It
began with his systematic annihilation of Munoz at UFC on Fuel TV 4
in July, followed by his withdrawal from a scheduled UFC 155 bout
with Tim
Boetsch and subsequent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his
shoulder. While Weidman was on the shelf, Alan
Belcher and Michael
Bisping were victimized in their respective matchups with
Yushin
Okami and Vitor
Belfort. Finally, former light heavyweight champion Rashad
Evans, rumored to be considering a move to 185 pounds, fell
flat in a unanimous decision defeat to Antonio
Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 156.

Suddenly, a fully recovered Weidman was the last man standing.

“It really is crazy how it ended up working out,” he said.
“Obviously, I’m very grateful for the opportunity. When I got
injured -- and I was lined up to fight Boetsch -- I felt something
good was going to come from this. Regardless of not getting the
Boetsch fight, I felt like I was going to be fighting a bigger
name, maybe not Anderson at that point, because you had a couple
other guys, like Bisping [and] Belcher that were ahead of me.

Photo:
Dave Mandel/Sherdog

Silva has held the title since 2006.

“Then it got down to me and Rashad,” Weidman added. “I had a
meeting with [UFC President] Dana [White] and [UFC CEO] Lorenzo
[Fertitta] and they said, ‘Look, it’s going to be between you and
Rashad,’ and Rashad ended up losing. There was no one left
really.”

Stylistically, many view Weidman as the prototypical foil for
Silva. A four-time collegiate wrestling All-American at Nassau
Community College and Hofstra University, Weidman defeated “The
Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 light heavyweight winner Ryan Bader as
a senior and tried out for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing,
only to have a rib injury interrupt those plans.

Groomed under former UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra and
revered striking guru Ray Longo, Weidman exhibited a startling
aptitude for submissions early in his development. Inside three
months, he won his first Grappler’s Quest tournament -- his weight
class and the absolute division -- and submitted all 13 of his
opponents in doing so. Moreover, Weidman qualified for the
prestigious Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World
Championships in 2009 after just eight months of formal training
and pushed seven-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Andre
Galvao to the limit in a memorable match in Barcelona, Spain.
Though he lost on points, he emerged as one of the tournament’s
breakout stars and has only gained momentum since.

“I really feel like, on paper, I’m a nightmare matchup for
Anderson,” Weidman said. “On paper, you can’t deny it. I’m
definitely a better wrestler. I definitely believe I’ve proven I
have better jiu-jitsu. I think I have the cardio, the athleticism.
I think there are a lot of things siding with me in this
fight.”

Silva was reportedly hesitant to accept a bout with the Baldwin,
N.Y., native, but Weidman, at least publicly, did not view the
Brazilian’s posturing as a slight.

“I’ve got enough incentive from my personal pride and just
visualizing this moment for four years,” he said. “I think I am a
nightmare matchup for him. If he had his way, he wouldn’t be
fighting me, but the UFC, Lorenzo and Dana wanted to make the fight
happen.”

Like so many others before him, from Franklin and Belfort to
Dan
Henderson, Nate
Marquardt and Chael
Sonnen, Weidman must grapple with the mystique that comes with
battling the most dominant figure in UFC history. Silva has won all
16 of his fights inside the Octagon, 14 of them finishes.

“My biggest concern right now is Anderson and getting that belt,”
Weidman said. “I think the best thing Anderson does is mentally
destroy people before they ever get in the cage with him. Once you
get in the cage with him, he does a great job of making you feel
like, ‘You don’t belong in this cage with me. You’re terrible. I’m
the man. You’re going to find a way out of this fight.’ The thing
is I’m very confident. I know my skills.”

Sonnen came closest to dethroning “The Spider” at UFC 117 in August
2010. Utilizing relentless takedowns, stout ground-and-pound,
fearless standup and a suffocating top game, the outspoken
Oregonian took the first four rounds from Silva before falling
asleep inside the champion’s guard and succumbing to a fifth-round
triangle choke. Weidman took notes.

“I’ve seen what Chael has done to him, and I’ve seen his
weaknesses,” he said. “I think I can expose them again and look for
a finish. You just have to be confident. You can say anything you
want before the fight, but it’s all about when you touch those
gloves, that you still have the confidence, and I’m going to make
sure I do. It’s all mental.”

Having the support and knowledge of a former UFC champion like
Serra in his corner has had a profound impact on Weidman.

“He’s helped me a lot through my career, just getting used to how
to deal with the fans and how to handle the pressure and different
things like that,” he said. “Just being in the room with the guy
... he doesn’t have to say a word. When you’re around guys who’ve
been where you want to go, it just gives you a confidence to be
able to achieve that.”

“

I’ve been in a rush since
day one. I know this is going
to be a short career. I want
to be a young champion.

”

-- Chris Weidman, UFC middleweight
contender

Weidman believes his time has arrived.

“I’ve been in a rush since day one,” he said. “I know this is going
to be a short career. I want to be a young champion. I’ve got
nothing against Anderson. I think he’s the greatest of all-time,
but I’m going to go in there and try to take his head off and put
him on his back and look to submit him. Nothing personal.”